Like a King
by Icura
Summary: Get summoned to Halkeginia. Like a King.
1. Chapter 1

Like a King

By Icura

~o~

Was this what it's like to fade away?

He knew the fate that awaited him, the same one that awaited all Servants. Nothingness.

He had been cloned from his real body—which was safely tucked away within the containers of the Heroic Throne—a mere copy fated only to vanish completely from the world like a piece of scum.

There was a reason why his legend was the first recorded in the history of mankind. He couldn't stand the thought of passing on without the records of his deeds, his hardships, and ultimately, his accomplishments disappearing along with him. It was possibly the only reason for his resurrection, one that was only granted by the powers of the Holy Grail, a polluted but powerful treasure that had been his. He had it within his grasp!

The world had been his to do as he saw fit. To be struck down by that which should have been his...it was humiliating, it was demeaning…

It was beautiful.

She was beautiful.

Despite the thousands of treasures that he had, none compared to her, the one that he could not attain. Why was it only at the end that he could understand such a simple fact?

Even as lost in his fading thoughts as he was, he felt a pulse. In this realm of darkness, where there shouldn't have been anything else, the sliver of energy was like a long bell, ringing across the sea of darkness. As if reaching out for a lifesaver, he reached out his hand. In the midst of the white, he could see a blurry figure reaching out for him—one that his mind barely recognized.

"Sa…ber…"

Gilgamesh grasped the energy.

~o~

The first thing that assaulted his senses was pain. Smoke clouded everything, and his body ached from the wounds attained in a battle that felt like it was only a few minutes ago. No matter how much he wanted to deny it, the pain was excruciating, more so as he had not felt even a pinch of agony before then. He nearly fell to his knees, but that would not be fitting for one of his stature. Instead, the King of Heroes gritted his teeth and spaced out his stance, holding himself up by strength of will alone.

As the smoke cleared, a gaggle of common humans—most of whom were children—and monsters could be seen gathered in front of him, most being young children not even having passed their teenage years. One of these brats had summoned him? Impossible. He was about to speak, but a stinging pain stifled the words before it could form in his throat. Looking down, he found a long gash crossed his bare chest, bleeding profusely down his naked body. Whereas lesser men would have long fallen into cries of pain and agony, he withstood it all in silence; his pride and ego demanded no less.

"That can't be…" Louise stared at the figure with her mouth agape.

"A naked, dying commoner? Fits you perfectly, Zero."

"Maybe we should call you negative two instead. You just seem to make things worse."

"Way worse. It's bad enough that you got a commoner, did you have to kill it too?"

"Shut up!" Louise screeched. Just when she succeeded, this had to happen. She was nearly to the point of crying when she turned to Professor Colbert. "Please, let me try again. I'll do better next time."

"No, Ms. Valliere." For his part, the teacher looked sternly but not unsympathetically at his student. "The spring time summoning ritual is sacred. You can only summon one familiar. Please complete the ritual."

Louise looked conflicted but with no solution coming to mind, she sighed and relented. Walking over to her new familiar, she tried to keep her gaze dignified and above his waist, holding back a small blush of both indignation and embarrassment.

Gilgamesh pointedly stared at Louise, taking in the features of the approaching girl. Unremarkable. In every way, he could tell that the girl was insignificant, but she had somehow summoned him, and that was a glorious achievement in and of itself. However, right now, he had no time for idle thoughts and gawking.

"Are you…my master…?" The question had been choked out through labored breathing and overwhelming pain. If it had been any other time, he would have lorded over and mocked this girl, but right now, he was in a precarious position. It was humiliating to be seen like this, but this second chance at life…he was not willing to let it part so easily. This was not something easily done by the King of Heroes, but he would repay this humiliation a hundred-folds in return. That thought alone kept him sane in his anguish.

Louise scowled but nodded nonetheless.

"Then get…on with it…" The contract was incomplete. He needed more prana—more energy—to sustain his life, and he needed it fast. Waiting for the oath of the Holy Grail War to be said, he was unprepared for the actual words that came from her mouth.

"My name is Louise Francoise Le Blanc de La Valliere. Pentagon of the Five Elemental Powers, bless this humble being and make him my familiar." With that chant completed, Louise rose on her tiptoes and kissed the Servant on the lips. Any words that he was about to say were cut off by a burning sensation on his right hand. Added on to the pain of his wound, the agony was near blinding, but he gritted his teeth and bore through it with all a king's dignity. When it ended, he blurrily looked down and saw the black outline of a command seal forming on his right hand.

"You better appreciate that I'm letting a commoner like you be my familiar." Louise's haughty gaze turned down to stare at the bleeding wound, her eyes softening at the sight. It looked even worse up close. Was this her fault? "We need to get you bandaged up."

"The contract…is complete…?" There was no prana, no connection to ensure his survival. Nothing at all! All he'd gotten was a pitiful tattoo. Was he to slowly succumb to his wounds like a mere mongrel, grasping at a false hope? To be cast low and made a laughing stock in his final moments?

Confusion gave way to anger. Before Louise realized it, Gilgamesh had his blood-stained hands around her throat. Ignoring the loud cries of alarm that rose up around him, he began to crush his master's slender throat.

"You miserable whelp!"

"That's quite enough!"

A burst of flames slammed into Gilgamesh's chest, sending him flying away from his new master. He fell roughly to the floor, skidding across the dirt. Gritting his teeth, he stared balefully at the blurry image of Professor Colbert. If he hadn't been weakened so much, he would have massacred such a pitiful magus; however, as it was now, he was the pitiful one. Disgrace upon disgrace. It was almost as if all of this was all a cruel joke, to take the glorious end he had received from Saber and replace it with such a humiliating one as this. Lying wretchedly on the floor, his consciousness fled him.

~o~

Siesta stirred the soup gently, swirling it with practiced ease. She brought silver spoon up to her lips and took a small sip, licking her lips as she contemplated the taste. It was a bit plain, but she supposed the patient won't mind, seeing as how he's asleep. It was time for dinner, and it wouldn't do to be late on her duties. Picking up the tray, she carried it into the one of the school's clinic's private rooms.

The patient in question was lying on a bed in the middle of the white room, his blond hair splayed out on the pillow and his chest bandaged heavily. It was small room, especially when compared to a Noble's, but she supposed patients weren't in any position to be picky. The curtains on the windows were spread open, allowing her a view of the afternoon sky.

Siesta sat down in a chair besides the bed and set the tray holding the bowl onto the drawer night stand besides her. There was no denying that the man had a handsome face; he would have probably made a good husband for some lucky girl if it weren't for these nobles interfering with his life like this. She couldn't imagine what it would be like, to be suddenly teleported here and nearly killed. Taking a spoonful of soup, she carefully opened the man's lips with her other hand and tipped the spoon's contents into the slightly gaping mouth.

"Open wide—oops."

A drop of soup spilled out of the corner of the blond man's mouth, dripping down his cheek. She quickly wiped it up with a napkin. That was careless. She'd thought she had gotten used to doing it after doing it all week, but it seemed she was still making mistakes.

"This will be a secret between you and me," Siesta whispered with a cheerful air, as if there were people spying on them. She could dream, right?

An idle thought drifted across her mind; maybe he already did have a wife and child. Vanishing in the middle of broad daylight, they might be searching for him even right now. If he woke up, would he rush back to his loved ones?

Siesta placed a hand on the side of her warm cheek and sighed longingly.

The thought of a man trying to get back to his loved ones was so very romantic, but a stupid one. She'd already checked his hand. While he wasn't wearing a wedding band, and there was no tattle-tell tan-marks that said otherwise. Though she did notice that he had pierced ears, but there were no actual earrings. Maybe he was a thug or a gangster? A roguish, rebellious fighter, fighting to save her from—

Stupid. What was she thinking about now? Sticking out her tongue, Siesta playfully knocked the side of her head with her knuckles in punishment. She needed to get back to work. Scooping up another spoonful of soup, she raised it to the patient's mouth.

"Here comes another—ah!"

The man stared up at her with annoyed red eyes, his hand having caught her wrist.

"Don't feed me any more of this filth, woman." With a careless swing of his arm, Gilgamesh sent Siesta tumbling to the floor, ignoring her pained and surprised cry. He sat up and stared around him. Where was he?

"Ow, ow." Siesta had fallen on her side, but besides that, she seemed okay for the most part. Rubbing her sore arm, she was about to complain until she saw Gilgamesh start to rise from his bed. "Wait, wait, you shouldn't move. You'll reopen your wound."

Ignoring the maid, Gilgamesh stood up from the bed and tore off his chest bandages to Siesta's utter dismay—or at least, that was until she noticed that the life threatening wound was mostly healed. In its place was a large scar, marring his otherwise statue-like body. He traced a finger over the edges of it not with disdain but a trance-like gaze. This flesh body was the exact same one created from the black mud; it wasn't hard to notice the corruption that ran through his veins, trying desperately to mold his mind, even as futile as it was. It would take five times—no, ten times the amount to even blacken one iota of his thoughts. However, it brought to the forefront of his mind what happened earlier.

Siesta, for her part, blushed and turned her head away. In a part of her mind, she worried over how he seemed to quickly recover from such a grievous wound, but there was a more pressing matter. Didn't the man notice that he was completely naked?

"I-I will go inform Miss. Valliere that you're awake. There is a set of clothes in the drawer. Please be dressed before then," Siesta rose to her feet, her back still turned to Gilgamesh. She practically ran through the door, not waiting to hear any response.

However, Gilgamesh ignored her. Instead, he was facing the window, staring out into the clear skies. Or rather, towards the faint impression two moons. It was a bit difficult to see in the daytime, but there was no doubt what those two were. He tapped his chin rhythmically as he contemplated the oddity.

"This isn't my world."

It was only now that the fallacies that he'd witnessed came crashing down on him. Two moons were simply just the start of his troubles. The tattoo on his hand was another. Now that his vision wasn't blurry and his life wasn't at stake, he saw that it was runes and not the familiar image of a command seal that he was accustomed to. Whatever it was, it had nothing to do with the Holy Grail War. Also, when Servants were summoned through the Holy Grail system, they would be given enough information to blend into that era. However, he'd received nothing. No information or knowledge at all. Not only that, but he kept his flesh body and the memories of the years he spent in Fuyuki.

All these facts led to only one thing.

"This world has no connection to the Holy Grail War."

This was a new world and new possibilities. As the king of everything, he had experienced most of the pleasures of the world, and they bored him. Even the many battles that he had been invited to before he ascended to the Heroic Throne were mostly farces, trifles not even worth mentioning in the same breath as his name. The few that had merit were inscribed into his legend—one that had survived past the ages as the oldest. Only in the Holy Grail War did he truly have more battles and enemies worthy of his attention. Only in the war did he find something worth seeking.

Saber. There was probably another way in this world to grant his wish. Excitement rose within his as his curiosity and ambition began to rise, but he squashed it down. To over-think things at such an early stage was to invite disaster.

Spreading out his arms, he summoned forth clothing from his vault. There was no need to check the drawers for anything; it was probably just peasant clothing stored in there. A red shirt, a white robe, and black pants materialized on him, decorated with lacquer—befitting for one of his status. It was flamboyant and extravagant, and while it would have looked ridiculous on a normal man, it completely fit his confident aura and arrogant gaze.

His capacity for prana was nearly charged from the week of rest, but it wasn't enough to simply rely on his magic circuits. To overcome this limitation of capacity—a problem unique to a living body as his previous spirit form in the Fourth Holy Grail War had no such limits—and fill him over his maximum, he had to drain the converted prana from those survivors of the black mud in the aftermath of the fourth war. Unlike when he was a spirit, he couldn't simply kill to gather prana either; it was more complicated than that. He needed to stockpile energy for his purposes, but that worry would've to wait until later.

"And here comes my Master now."

He could feel—through a sliver-like connection between them—that she was near. The feeling emanated from the tattoo; he hadn't noticed any function to it until now, but perhaps, it had more purpose than a simple decoration. He would need to find out more about the system that brought him here. This was only the beginning so he would stay his hand; haste would only lead to regret. Hadn't he found that out firsthand on his journey for immortality?

~o~

Louise was nervous as she followed behind Siesta. Why wouldn't she be? She was going to the school's clinic to visit her familiar—the same one that tried to strangle her. There had been some bruises, but it'd been a week since then so they had all faded away. Nonetheless, occasionally, she still felt the fingers around her throat, tightening ever so slowly. It had been hard at first to deal with the stress and nightmares, but she had gotten used to it. She was a Valliere, and it wouldn't do for her to show weakness like this.

Though, nobody mocked her about having a commoner for a familiar anymore. Even Montmorency the Flood didn't talk about it, not after what happened in the classroom. It had been a moment of weakness, but she knew that the story of it had circulated across the whole school. By now, everyone was looking at her with pity; it was a feeling that she couldn't stand. It was so much better when they were simply mocking her with the nickname Zero instead of giving her those silent pitying looks, as if she were some fallen Noble or something.

"I can't show any weakness," Louise mumbled, trying to raise her confidence. "I have to show him who's the master and who's the familiar."

She was strong. What would her mother do if she saw that she was afraid of some commoner? She had to do this. Taking a deep breath, she raised her eyes with renewed determination and strode through the hallway with a gait that belied her anxiety.

Around the corner, Kirche leaned against the wall, watching as Louise passed by.

"So Louse the Zero is going to see her familiar, huh." She had heard the small mumbles of her classmate, and despite herself, she had to admit that she was worried. The Zerbst family and the Valliere family had always been at odds, especially since their lands were bordering each other and their allegiance were to two separate countries. There had been a lot of bloodshed and controversies between the families, breeding hatred and rivalry. Of course, she was superior here, but Louise had never faltered, even when everyone disliked her for being such a failure.

Until that girl started crying in the classroom. That was certainly an eye-opener to see someone that proud become a mess. Kirche had even laid off on the teasing for awhile because of it.

This wasn't any of her business. Zero was back to normal so the little girl could deal with any trouble that happens. Nothing to worry about at all—

Ah, who was she kidding? That was a lie.

She couldn't let something like this go; she couldn't stand the fact that Louise was acting so weak and helpless from something other than the Zerbst's superiority over the Valliere.

Kirche shrugged her shoulders with a sigh.

"I guess I better check up on her. Things always go bad around Zero. Isn't that right, Flame?"

Sitting on the floor besides her was a red salamander that snorted a small burst of flames in response.

~o~

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Louise enter the room, though cautiously. The girl kept a distance, obviously remembering his attempt to strangle her. He had to admit, it had been disgusting to use his bare hands on a weakling. Had he been in the right state of mind, he would have simply sent one of his swords to end her life.

Louise boldly—and naively—strode up to him with an air of confidence and arrogance, though that did little to hide the fear she hid behind her facade. She'd told the maid to leave so that she could do this in private, but now that she was in this situation, she almost wished she had asked the maid to stay. However, it was now or never. She had to show him who's the boss around here.

"You should be thankful that I'm so merciful," Louise said haughtily, trying to fill her voice with authority. "If it weren't for me, you would have been left to die or locked away in prison for what you did."

"A trifling issue. I'd simply lost control." Gilgamesh glared at the girl. " There's a more pressing problem at hand. Why have you stifled my energy supply, magus?"

He had no patience for weaklings and traitors, but he had even less for those that disrespectfully restrict his power. If this girl purposely kept him weak, her death would be guaranteed.

"What are you talking about?" Louise quickly regained her mannerism. She'd been stunned by his strange statement, but he must have said that to throw her off. She was the master here, and it wouldn't do to show weakness to a familiar, even if he was human. "Know your place, familiar."

"Do you expect that I, Gilgamesh, would allow a mere mongrel like you to leash me like a dog?" Gilgamesh walked closer. What need did he have of a Master anyways? The life threatening situation before necessitated it, but not any longer. He had a body of blood and flesh, containing its own set of magic circuits to produce prana. It would take much longer to stockpile enough energy for his purposes, but what use is the magus if she could not expedite that process? "Why should I submit to you?"

Despite herself, Louise took a step back but not before raising her wand threateningly.

"You stupid familiar! What do you think you're doing?"

With a casual backhand, Gilgamesh slapped the wand out of her hand.

"Ah!" Suddenly without any defenses, Louise was at a loss to what to do and backed up fearfully, her eyes darting between the fallen wand and her approaching familiar. It was only when she was pressed with her back against the wall that she summoned up courage. She was about to kick in between his legs, but as if anticipating that, the blond man shifted his leg forward to block it. Glaring at Gilgamesh, she said, "Are you trying to do something to a noble? If you lay a hand on me, you'll be executed."

"Is that the extent of your bravados? An insipid threat?" Gilgamesh scoffed, pressing his hands against the wall to either side of her to prevent escape. "I'd expected more out of one that was able to summon me. You disappoint me, whelp."

"Don't call me that, you commoner!" Louise screeched, her fear erased by her anger. She slapped her familiar's cheek, though the man didn't flinch at the hit.

Gilgamesh's eyes narrowed. His patience was running thin. However, it was still too early to slay this worm; he needed to gather more information. He would allow her some leeway simply for the fact that she summoned him into this new world, but that wouldn't stay his hand for long. He needed to quickly dominate her mind and extract the information by force.

"You should know that her name is Zero."

Those words didn't come from either of the two, causing them both to turn their heads towards the sound of the voice. Standing in the open doorway, leaning against the frame was Kirche, her red hair flowing down along her shoulders. Her arms were crossed under her chest, seeming to emphasize her large breasts.

"Louise the Zero. She can't even cast a single spell right."

"Shut up, Kirche!" Louise slipped under Gilgamesh's outstretched arm and marched up to the red-headed girl, having seemed to have forgotten completely about her familiar. "What are you doing here?"

"I was bored," Kirche said calmly, holding up a curled hand to examine her fingernails. Inwardly, she congratulated herself on defusing the situation, not that Louise would ever know.

"Well, nobody wants you here!"

"Seems so. It looked like you and your familiar were having a romantic moment."

"Who was?"

While the two argued back and forth, Gilgamesh stared down at the tattoo on his hand. A magus that can't cast a spell correctly? Things were starting to make sense. Had he been summoned purely from the luck of a moron?

Laughter erupted from Gilgamesh, causing the girls in the room to stop their argument and stare at him. Like the meaningless nonsense of a jester, this joke dawned on him. Only the truly great have summoned him, yet there was an infinitely small chance that a true fool could call him forth; to think that this simplistic girl was of the latter was simply hilarious.

"What are you laughing about, commoner?"

Despite the insult, Gilgamesh smiled at her, as if he were smiling at the antics of a jester. And truly, wasn't this analogy the same as reality? Only one conclusion came to his mind.

Her very existence, to have luck that defied the realm of gods in order to summon him, was truly miraculous. Even if it was an accident, the odds were on a scale of billions—no, trillions. For her to succeed despite that was truly something praise-worthy. Despite her plain exterior, perhaps she held within her something exceedingly rare. There was simply no other explanation as to how such a weak individual managed to summon the King of Heroes—and from a completely different world at that.

"Be honored, mongrel. I've decided to let you live."

Kirche laughed. "Even your familiar thinks that he's better than you, Zero."

"You…you…" Louise gritted her teeth. "You stupid familiar! You're the one who should be grateful to be alive!"

"Hoh?" Gilgamesh smirked mockingly. "And why is that?"

"I'm Louise Francoise Le Blanc de La Valliere of the Valliere family. You assaulted a Noble! If I didn't tell them to save you, you would be dead right now."

"Is that all?" Gilgamesh scoffed. "Know now that you summoned the King of Heroes, Gilgamesh, the greatest of all Servants. All else are pitiful trifles beneath me."

Both Louise and Kirche's jaws dropped at the statement, and a single thought ran through both of their minds. He's insane. King of Heroes? To say that one was the king of a country was ridiculous, but the king of all of the heroes in the world? That was just a new level of crazy.

Not only that, but wasn't it contradictory to introduce oneself as a king and a servant?

"Hoh?" Gilgamesh crossed his arms over his chest and grinned confidently. "Are you awed by my majesty?"

"I'm certainly awed by something," Kirche mumbled. She was still gaping at the sheer ridiculousness of the situation. "That's one interesting familiar you've there."

Louise didn't bother to respond.

"Sorry, Zero, you're on your own." She patted Louise on the shoulder. Without waiting for a reply, she walked out of the room.

Louise was about to stop her from leaving, but she bit back the words. Why would she ever need help from the Zerbst family? She could take care of this herself. Turning back to her familiar, she was faced with Gilgamesh's silent stare, as if he was staring into her soul.

That actually wasn't too off from the truth. He was trying to see what exactly made her so special, though nothing was coming to mind.

Anxiety started to build up in her as she wondered how to break the silence that had fallen between them. As if to stall for time, she walked over and picked up her wand. However, the oppression of the gaze didn't leave her. Just as she was about to try to break the ice, there was a loud sound.

Gilgamesh's stomach growled.

Outside the window, a red salamander raised its head to peek in. Seeing that everything was alright, it ducked its head once more and disappeared from sight.

~o~

Gilgamesh stared at the bowl of rice gruel that Louise was holding. They were in the cafeteria, and there were plenty of students milling about, eating their luxurious food at the three long tables that could seat at least a hundred each. As it was in the afternoon, there were not as many people as there would be if it were lunch or dinner. A few people were looking at them, especially considering Gilgamesh's strange clothing, but most were minding their own business.

"Well, aren't you going to take it? I thought you were hungry." Louise held out the bowl. "We'll head outside since you can't eat in here."

"Do you understand what you're saying?" Gilgamesh's eyes narrowed. He'd come here for food, not for slop. "This is food unfit for a sow."

"Well, it's the only food you'll get." Louise sighed exasperatedly. Why did she have to deal with a crazy familiar who thinks he's royalty? Why couldn't she simply get a griffon or a dragon? She would even settle for a hawk. "Only Nobles can eat in the Alvis Dining Hall so you've to go back."

Nobles? Gilgamesh glanced around the cafeteria for a moment, but he saw no Nobles. Only fools. Certainly no one above the King of Heroes.

"If I must eat lower than plebeians." Gilgamesh placed his foot on the edge of a table. "Then you mongrels must eat off the floor!"

With a shove of his foot and in spite of the table's massive length, he flipped the entire table over, shattered the bowls and plates as well as scattering their contents across the floor. The students that had been sitting at the table had quickly moved out of the way, and they were now standing there, glaring daggers at the two.

"What do you think you're doing, you stupid familiar?" Louise was enraged, but seeing the number of faces that were looking angrily at her, she quickly started giving out apologies. He was about to slap the bowl of rice gruel out of her hands when his own hand froze up.

_Stop._

Gilgamesh stared down at the tattoo on his hand. It was glowing and somehow seizing up his hand. Was it reacting to his intent to do harm unto her? The feeling was escalating to his wrist and forearm, and he had no doubt that it would soon spread throughout his entire body.

Foolish.

He gripped his fingers into a fist, breaking the feeble control the tattoo had over him. They could paint his body black with these runes, but he would still not succumb even then. However, the audacity of branding him with a geis; that insult was something he couldn't ignore.

"You branded my body with a slave's geis? You worm!" He held out his hand, palm upward, and in that hand appeared a key-shaped sword.

"What are you talking about?" Louise back away. She was perplexed by his sudden anger, but the appearance of the sword out of nowhere confused her even more. "How?"

"For the crime of defacing the king's body, there is only death." With the key in hand, Gilgamesh unlocked the Gates of Babylon, letting the key-shaped blade vanish in the act. One weapon would be enough. The air shimmered in front of him as a diamond shaped weapon came into existence. Golden in color, four beast nails surrounded the diamond, each originating at the connection point of the handle. Its appearance alone spoke of age and majesty as if it were a king's crown.

Vajra, once owned by Hindu gods after Gilgamesh's death, was a weapon that did a fixed amount of damage no matter how much prana was infused into it. That suited him well now. Though it was only a B-ranked Noble Phantasm, it would be more than enough to end the life of a single worm.

By this time, the other students had scrambled out of the way, and even Louise had backed up until there was a considerable distance between the two.

"W-what do you plan to do with that? Y-you stupid familiar!" Despite her words, Louise was desperately trying to hold back her fear. She tried to move, but her feet were frozen in place. The dangerousness of the weapon and the killing intent that rolled off Gilgamesh was immense; even from this distance, it felt like he had his hands across her throat, tightening ever so slowly.

"How could a weak fool like you've ever summoned me? Begone from my sight, vermin."

~o~

"Professor Colbert! Professor!"

Professor Colbert placed a bookmark between the pages with practiced fingers before he shut the book. He had been walking through the hallway from the library to the lavatory, but he was simply at too good of a passage to put the book down. If what he read was true, then things would be more interesting around here. However, no one could say that he wasn't a good teacher. Looking up from the book, he frowned sternly at the female student running through the hallway towards him.

"Ms. Zerbst, please refrain from running in the hallway." He adjusted his glasses and tried to keep the blush off his cheeks as he watched the red-headed girl's chest bounce. It was really quite distracting.

"There's no time for that!" Kirche stopped in front of the professor. "There's trouble in the cafeteria."

"What kind of trouble?"

"It's Zero's familiar. You have to hurry!"

At any other time, Colbert would have reprimanded Kirche for referring to another student like that, but he understood the severity of the situation. Dropping the book, he ran at full speed towards the cafeteria with Kirche following at a much slower pace.

From around the corner, Ms. Longueville stepped out of the shadows. She'd overheard the conversation, but she wasn't interested in seeing some dispute between a student and her familiar. She walked over to the fallen book and picked it up. Opening the book to the bookmarked page, she quickly skimmed its contents.

"Tips for asking a woman out?"

How disappointing.

Ms. Longueville carelessly threw the book over her shoulder as she walked away.

~o~

"Wait!"

However, Gilgamesh was in no mood to listen to any more of his Master's words. With a wave of his hand, Vajra rocketed forth from its portal, its diamond tip piecing through the air at high speed towards the girl like a thrown spear.

Even Louise could tell that death was inevitable. She squeezed her eyes shut and awaited her fate.

"Fire shield!"

The sound of a diamond's edge hitting a crystal wall echoed through the room. Louise tentatively opened her eyes.

"Professor Colbert?"

Standing protectively in front of her, Colbert held out his wand, grunting with the strain of his efforts. An oblique red wall was in front of him, the square edges of the shield lit by fire. The diamond pounder had pierced its tip through the center of the fire shield, sending periodic shockwaves through the red wall as it dug deeper and deeper.

However, it wasn't called the fire shield for nothing. From the point of contact, flames spread over the golden diamond, lighting Vajra on fire.

"Fools." Gilgamesh laughed at the sight. "Vajra is called the Indestructible Diamond Pounder, because it cannot be harmed that easily. Writhe around like worms and die."

Vajra was lit into a flaming torch, but in spite of this, it continued to drill ever so slowly through the shield.

"Ms. Valliere." Colbert gritted his teeth as he poured more energy into the spell, strengthening the shield beyond its limits. He knew that the moment that he slacked in even the slightest was the same moment that the diamond weapon would run him through. "Get out of here!"

Louise was shivering as she stared, frozen at the sight. Only one thought ran through her mind. She was going to die. It would be an utterly meaningless death, having gained nothing and achieved nothing. Why did this have to happen to her?

"Hoooh? Aren't you the one that humiliated me when I was summoned here?" The King of Heroes stared more closely at Colbert. "I'd wanted to torment you further, but I'll settle for simply your death. Be glad of the king's mercy."

"Valliere!" Was this the end for him? Despite the sweat that rained down from his forehead, Professor Colbert was grinning. He'd done so many things that he wasn't proud of, killed so many people that didn't deserve death, but for him to save a life in the end...it brought tears to his eyes. This wasn't much, but at least, he would redeem himself a little more. This was the type of ending that he'd hoped for; it was the type of ending that he dreamed of. Feeling vigor return to his body, Colbert reinforced his falling knees and stood up straighter as he poured even more magic into his fire shield. "Louise Francoise Le Blanc de La Valliere, move!"

Louise's head snapped up at the call of her full name. For a moment, she'd thought her mother was here, standing in front of her. But she wasn't here.

"What am I doing?"

The diamond weapon was nearly halfway through the fire shield, so what was she doing, freezing up like this? Was this how a Valliere should act?

Swallowing down her anxieties and fears, Louise squashed her hesitation. If she faltered here, before this stupid familiar, what would her mother say? If she ran away, what would her sisters say? If she allowed someone else to die in her place, what would her ancestors say?

Looking back on it all, what could she say about herself?

The pitying looks; the tears that she cried, waking up from nightmares; and her teacher, trying desperately to save her—all of it ran through her thoughts. These weren't anything to be proud of. If she didn't do anything here, this wouldn't be a memory that she could stand shamelessly before. This wasn't what she wanted.

The chant of the spell flowed into her mind. She raised her wand and pointed it at the diamond weapon that refused to stop. It was now or never.

"Valliere, what are you doing?" Colbert strained to hold the shield even as he glanced at his student out of the corner of his eye. "Didn't I say to run—"

"Light shield!"

A powerful explosion erupted at the fire shield, sending Louise and Colbert flying backwards from the force of impact. Black smoke filled the room, blocking everything from sight. The spectators that had crowded the cafeteria's walls, standing out of the line of fire, were screaming and rushing about in panic.

It took a few moments before the smoke dissipated, revealing Gilgamesh standing in the same spot as he was before. Having been a good distance away from the impact, he'd not been stained by soot or char like Louise and Colbert, but he was affected nonetheless. Piercing into his abdomen was the diamond pounder.

To deflect it was a worthy accomplishment, but to send it spiraling back to him as a weapon was truly praise-worthy.

"You're starting to show your worth now." Gilgamesh grabbed the handle of Vajra with one hand and ripped it out of his abdomen carelessly, a sickening squishing sound accompanying the brutality. However, he neither flinched nor acknowledged the wound; instead, he stood tall and upright, crossing his arms over his chest as he stared arrogantly at Louise. Around him, the air shimmered. Where there were none, twelve weapons made themselves known, each possessing a glorious and majestic appearance that awed even the most ignorant of eyes. Hammers, scythe, swords, spears, and sickles were floating at ready, waiting to be unleashed in a rain of death.

"By the Great Founder Brimir…" Professor Colbert—sitting against the ruined cafeteria's wall—was in both awe and despair. It had taken all of his effort to stall even one of those weapons, but twelve more? He could only hope the Headmaster and other teachers get here quickly enough to stop this monster.

"You stupid familiar. Don't you know who your master is?"

Despite everything, Louise wasn't about to give up. Her spell had worked—not quite how she imagined, but it saved her anyways. She wasn't about to waste the life that she just regained. She stood up from the messy debris, not bothering to brush off the soot, as she faced Gilgamesh. Even in the face of the killing intent he emanated, she gritted her teeth and stood without shaking.

Gilgamesh stared speculatively at the soot-stained girl. "But are you worthy of being my Master?"

"I am." She gripped her hands into fists.

"Hoh? I was only keeping you alive before, because you are interesting." Gilgamesh smirked. "What makes you think I won't kill you in the future?"

"I won't die even then." There was no hesitation in her voice.

"If I say for you to prove your immortality, would you?" Gilgamesh waved Vajra at the assembled weapons, uncaring of the fact that it aggravated his wound.

"I won't fall here." Louise couldn't. The pride and expectation of her family and ancestors were behind here. If she were to falter now, she wouldn't be able to face them in this life or the next. There was too much to do, but even if she died now, she would be remembered.

This was her legacy.

She raised her wand towards Gilgamesh fearlessly.

"I will make you my familiar!"

"Hmph." The weapons in the air faded away as Gilgamesh closed the Gates of Babylon. He arrogantly strode over to Louise, unmindful of the blood trail he left in his wake. Stopping at a short distance away from her, he stared down at soot-covered girl and raised the tip of his blood-covered diamond pounder toward her. She met his gaze with an impudent glare, her own wand pointed towards him.

Even now, he could see the fear in her, squirreled away from sight. But that was also called courage.

He didn't dislike brave women.

"What is your wish, Master?"


	2. Chapter 2

Like a King

By Icura

Chapter 2

~o~

"The Headmaster will see you now." Ms. Longueville held the door open as she ushered Louise into the office. Seeing the girl's nervousness, she shot her a reassuring smile. "You'll be fine. I'll be waiting outside with the maid and your familiar."

Louise nervously stepped into the office, hearing the door click shut behind her. The room was stacked with bookshelves and regal in appearance. The curtains were closed—which didn't matter as it was already dark by this time—but the room was brightly lit by a glamorous chandelier. Headmaster Osmond was sitting at his desk, watching her with a gentle expression that belied his eagle-like eyes. By his side was Professor Colbert, waiting patiently. She gulped as she walked up to the desk. The Headmaster's hands were clasped in front of him as if in deep contemplation, but he separated his fingers at her approach.

"I'm sorry to keep you waiting, Ms. Valliere. It took longer than expected to finish up," Osmond said cheerfully, trying to alleviate the tension and stress that the girl was obviously under. Truthfully, he had been questioning witnesses, but she didn't need to know that. "I hope that Miss…Miss…"

"Ms. Siesta," Colbert helpfully interjected.

"Ah, yes, Ms. Siesta." Osmond shot Colbert a thankful glance before returning his attention to the young student. "I hope that she has seen to your needs."

"She has." Louise fidgeted. The maid had brought them their meals while she was forced to wait in her dorm room, separated from Gilgamesh. A few teachers had been standing guard in the hallway of the dormitory so she had been stuck with nothing to do except anxiously wait for them to summon her.

"Good, good." Osmond nodded. "Ms. Siesta will be your personal maid for the duration of your suspension. You will not be allowed to leave your room except to take a bath."

"Suspension?" Louise's mouth was wide open in surprise. "But it wasn't my fault!"

"Lower your voice, Ms. Valliere." Osmond gave her a stern look, causing the young girl to shrink back. "The fault of the familiar is the fault of the master. You're aware of that policy, are you not?"

Louise forced her emotions down, swallowing it like a bitter pill. This wasn't going like she thought it would—should have. She thought she would be able to express her side of what happened, but their judgment had already been decided beforehand; she was only here to receive it.

"Yes, Headmaster," she said dejectedly.

"Everyone's safety is my number one priority," Osmond said. "I hope you understand why I have to take such measures."

Louise nodded her head. As much as she didn't like being suspended, there were worse things—like if her mother found out. She shivered at the thought.

"Good." Osmond relaxed his gaze. "Did your familiar come with you?"

"He's waiting outside." Louise had only seen her familiar when she arrived outside the office, and even then, no words had been exchanged between the two. She wasn't sure how to feel about that, but part of her was relieved that he didn't say anything; she wasn't sure how to even approach him after what happened.

"Tell Ms. Longueville to please send him in on your way out. You may leave now." Osmond gave her a sympathetic smile. "It's been a long day. Try and get some rest. Ms. Siesta will attend to you. I will have Ms. Longueville lead your familiar back to your dorm room after we have a talk with him."

"Thank you, Headmaster." Louise turned around to leave. Walking over to the door, she placed her hand on the knob.

"It's my sincere hope that you will learn to control your familiar during this time," Osmond said. "If another incident occurs, I'm afraid we will have to take more drastic measures."

Louise paused, her hand gripping the door knob tightly. After a few moments, she turned the door knob and left the room without another word.

Colbert shot Osmond a worried glance. "Are you sure this is wise?"

"We have a responsibility as teachers, Professor." Old Osmond breathed in deeply. "Is it ready?"

Colbert nodded. "The trap is set. If any spell is used in this room, it will explode."

The Headmaster grimly nodded. It was a necessary precaution, especially when dealing with an individual as dangerous as their next guest.

It wasn't long before Gilgamesh walked into the room in a relaxed stride. His clothes, having been ruined by the incident at the Cafeteria, had been changed into a completely different set. While plainer than his previous, it had a strange style to it that the Headmaster and Professor had never seen before. It was a white dress shirt overlaid by a thin black jacket with white stripes and black dress pants. The top two buttons of the shirt were unbuttoned, making him appear more messily casual than he would otherwise. It had a somewhat hyper-sexual feel to it that seemed oriented to attracting women.

In other words, it greatly irritated Osmond and Colbert, both of whom had less than spectacular results with women. However, both were experienced enough to hide their feelings, an inevitable result from being teachers.

Gilgamesh smirked as he noticed the two's gazes. He had bought these clothes during the interval between the Holy Grail Wars. It had appealed to his younger mentality—one caused by the potion of youth— and had allowed him to blend in with the populace of Fuyuki quite nicely. Had he kept his original age, he would have found this attire distasteful, but perhaps it was sentimentality for his bygone innocence that made him keep it.

The golden king walked a few steps into the room before he stopped, his gaze turning to his right side.

Colbert and Osmond exchanged glances. Wasn't he staring at where the trap spell was? Just when they were beginning to get nervous, Gilgamesh simply scoffed and returned his gaze to the other two occupants. He strode forward confidently, stopping only when he reached the Headmaster's desk.

"Thank you for coming. I'm Headmaster Osmond, and this is Professor Colbert." Osmond pointed to the balding man besides him. "Could you please introduce yourself?"

"Hmph." Gilgamesh supposed he could give all his titles, but it would mean nothing to the inhabitants of this world. Why waste breath on something they would never understand? There was only one title that they needed to know. "I'm the King of Heroes, Gilgamesh."

"King of Heroes?" Osmond's brows furrowed slightly. "Could you elaborate on that?"

"Hoh?" A grin appeared on Gilgamesh's lips as he crossed his arms. Perhaps, he had been too hasty on judgment. How could he fault ignorance when it's from people in a different world? A legend was not a legend if it wasn't passed down, even if it had to come from his own lips. "I suppose I can enlighten you plebeians. Listen closely and understand my greatness."

Despite the insults, Osmond nodded and began stroking his beard. He seemed accommodating enough in how easily he accepted his request. Maybe there was nothing to worry about.

"I'm the strongest and most powerful of all heroes and kings to ever walk the world."

Osmond froze mid-stroke.

"I've beaten a beastman with my bare hands, slaughtered a mountain god, rend apart the Divine Bull of the Heavens, and traveled to the ends of the world. My leadership alone allowed my armies to massacre any opposition, even outnumbered fifty to one. While kings strive futilely and desperately in war and peace, I have ruled the prosperous kingdom of Uruk with ease and remained undefeated during my reign."

Osmond and Colbert exchanged incredulous glances.

"People far and wide bearing tribute has sought audience with me, to bathe in my presence, but only the most alluring of women could join my harem. Except for beautiful boys. Those were a rare delicacy that only last for a few years.

"I used to lay them along my throne room and simply roll over them, coming to a halt at the women who would entertain me for the night only when I become too dizzy. I've bedded newly married virgin wives on their wedding night—to take what was mine by right—but Enkidu made me stop. Ah, I miss him so."

Colbert's eyebrows furrowed in disbelief. Osmond was in a similar state.

"I'd made a legacy that far outlasted even fairy tales. My epic was retold throughout the ages and inspired heroes to their greatest height, but none have ever matched my legend."

Gilgamesh spread out his arms dramatically.

"What hero—what king—could claim to have done greater feats than mine? Who could possibly defeat the King of—"

Oh wait, there was one. His Saber. However, this was neither the time nor the place. Cutting off that train of thought, Gilgamesh hastily continued.

"Nearly all heroes in history have died from battle, treachery, accidents, or illness. For one such as I, these simple circumstance could never kill me. I've slaughtered armies simply by being on the battlefield, ripped apart traitors and conniving plots alike, walked through deadly trials unhindered, and tasted no sickness or malady. I died instead from old age and boredom."

Colbert's mouth was agape and his glasses slid down his nose. By this time, Osmond had lost any sense of pretense and was openly gawking at the blond man.

"Do you not see the heroics that no man but the greatest of them all could do? Do you not hear the trumpets and groveling of mankind to my Golden Rule? Do you not feel sandwiched by the power and sovereignty of my majestic presence? Understand my greatness and prostrate your lives before me."

The Headmaster and the Professor glanced at each other for a moment, their faces in various states of shock, confusion, and disbelief. Finally, they turned back to the smug familiar.

"So…you're dead…" Colbert concluded.

"No." Gilgamesh's smile fell off his lips and he crossed his arms in annoyance. Did they not understand his stateliness even after his grand speech?

"But you just said you died."

Gilgamesh scoffed. "Does it look like I'm dead?"

"No…"

"Then don't ask foolish questions, mongrel!"

Colbert pursed his lips and frowned. However, a thought came to his mind. He turned his head to Osmond. "Wait, wasn't there a pause when he was talking about being undefeated?"

Osmond looked thoughtful for a moment before nodding his head. "I believe there was."

Gilgamesh narrowed his eyes.

"None of you are worthy enough to even know the name of Saber."

"I'm not sure how a sword has anything to do with this—"

"She is not simply a sword, worm. Saber is the greatest blade, the King of Knights. She is the greatest possession that cannot be obtained," Gilgamesh interrupted in a tone that left no room for dissent. "Perhaps you thought your own insignificant lives were greater than that of Saber's. If so, let your delusion of grandeur be put to rest. Your trivial existence cannot match her splendor in the slightest."

Silence reigned throughout the room. Osmond and Colbert slowly glanced at each other, both not quite sure what to make of those statements—not even sure if it was about a sword anymore. Finally, Osmond broke the silence by clapping his hands twice.

"Right…" Osmond settled his hands down on the desk. "Let's move on to more important matters, shall we? I've never heard of a mage using the type of magic that people said you used. What kind of mage are you?"

"Fool. I'm no magus."

"But you cast spells."

"Casting? Don't be absurd. I command; I do not chant gibberish." Seeing Osmond and Colbert's questioning looks, Gilgamesh sighed in exasperation and pointed at Colbert. "Did you not see a small part of the glorious treasury of the king? Is your feeble memory that decrepit? You should know by sight that those treasures could only be possessed by one greater than their magnificence. Burn into your minds the presence of a king."

"But royalty are also mages."

"Hoh?" Gilgamesh stared at the two in amusement. "That's completely senseless. What kind of pathetic kingdom has magi as kings?"

Silence enveloped the room once again. Seeing the completely serious expressions on Osmond and Colbert's faces, Gilgamesh slowly began chuckling before bursting out into full-blown laughter.

"Oookay." Osmond rubbed his temple in frustration as he watched the familiar continue to laugh himself senseless. Despite the reason for the meeting, they were getting a lot more questions than answers. "I think we're done here."

~o~

Louise opened the door to her dorm room and entered. This had been a long day. It was night time so the only illuminating light was from the two moons that shone through the window. With a snap of her fingers, the lamp flickered to life and lit up the dark room. She almost closed the door behind when she remembered the maid's presence.

"Oh right, you're supposed to be my personal maid from now on."

"Until the end of your suspension," Siesta added as she entered the room and quietly closed the door. She took a curious glance around the room. She usually worked in the kitchen or on laundry duties so she wasn't part of the staff that cleaned the dormitories. As such, she had never really gotten a close look at the rooms before.

It was fairly large, enough that it could house a good sized family, and it was connected to a smaller restroom that contained a toilet, a sink, and probably a few buckets of water. The room itself was lightly decorated, sporting plain white walls and the normal wooden flooring. There was a table and a couple of chairs, along with the dresser and a make-up complete with mirror, fairly standard furniture that came with the room. The queen-sized bed had a canopy with silk drapes and was probably ridiculously soft.

"How long will you be staying?" Louise asked, holding out her arms.

"Until you're asleep, Miss." Siesta walked up to Louise and began unbuttoning the black robe off the noble.

Louise nodded and waited for the maid to finish. After a few long moments, she was starting to get impatient.

"What's taking so long?"

"I'm sorry, Miss," Siesta said as she continued to work on the robe. "But if you could stop shaking for a few seconds, I can take it off."

"I'm not shaking."

Siesta bit back her response. While she wanted to refute that statement, it wouldn't be good for her to anger a noble, no matter how wrong they were. Many of them were petty enough to hold a grudge. She simply continued her efforts in silence. However, Louise noticed the look on her face.

"I told you, I'm not—" Louise blinked. Her vision was wavering. Shaking her head slightly, she tried to swallow down the feeling rising in the center of her chest.

"Are you alright, Miss?" Siesta finally unbuttoned the robe, but she noticed that her charge was sweating and looking pale.

"I-I'm fine." Louise brushed off the concern. "I just need to use the restroom. Stay here."

Holding in the strange feeling, Louise stalked over to the connecting restroom. Once inside, she shut and tried to lock the door, but her trembling hands were making that task difficult.

"Come on," Louise said through gritted teeth. It seemed like forever before the lock finally made a click, signifying her success. Without the dignity that she displayed earlier, she rushed over to the sink and bent over.

"Urrrgh!"

Vomit began filling the sink. Puke and bile spilled from her lips, her body convoluting at each mouthful that rebelled. She didn't know how long it lasted, and she didn't particularly care to know. Only after it finally ended did she start coughing, spitting out the last bits of gastric juices. The taste was burning her throat. Cold sweat ran down her forehead as she stared down at the mess she made. Dull red streaks ran across the bits and chunks.

Blood. There was blood mixed in with the vomit. Her vision started blurring again.

She was trembling, shaking so much that it was making her feel even more nauseous. She grabbed the edges of the sink to steady herself, but it did little to relieve her shivering. Her fingers tightened as she felt another wave rose up in her. However, with tremendous effort, she choked it down. Her lungs burned as she breathed in rapid, shallow gasps, coughing every once in a while.

Louse looked up at the mirror.

Her eyes were blood-shot and tears were running freely down her cheeks. She hadn't even noticed that she was crying, but now that she did, her face scrunched. She covered her mouth with her hands, holding it tightly there. She squeezed her weeping eyes shut even as saliva and leftover vomit leaked between her fingers.

She was afraid that if she let go, she would scream.

That face that stared back reminded her of everything. With the adrenaline gone and the excitement done, events of the day came rushing back. The fear, the anxiety, the horror, the despair, the hope, the hatred, and the sadness all came back at once. The worries that plagued her before meeting her familiar in the clinic, the life-threatening situation at the cafeteria, and the talks with the teachers—all of it flew back at her like arrows, each piercing her deeply.

How did she even manage to get through it all? The strength that she had was like an illusion now, as if someone else was controlling her and she was merely watching. The brave and proud noble that she knew that she could never become.

She was a failure. How could she think otherwise?

Without any hands to support her, she slid down to knees, her sobbing muffled by her wet fingers. She couldn't let anyone see her, neither noble nor commoner. She hoped beyond hope that nobody could hear her; she wouldn't be able to face them.

She wouldn't be able to answer even if they knocked.

~o~

"All students are nobles so they are expected to learn how to behave appropriately."

Ms. Longueville tried to keep her displeasure from reaching her face, but it was a hard task as any. She had been told by the Headmaster to explain the rules to the familiar while she led him to the Valliere girl's dorm room. However, there was something about the blond man that ticked her off to no ends. It wasn't something that he said or did, as he had been silent for the entire trip. She didn't quite know what it was, but honestly, she didn't care to know. All she wanted to do now was to get this over with.

Gilgamesh was walking alongside the secretary, but he paid no attention to the woman. Instead, he was focusing his attention on her surroundings, taking in the entrance hall of the female dormitory that they had just entered. This didn't mean that he wasn't listening; rather, he discarded most of what she said as useless the moment he heard them.

"Familiars are considered an extension of their masters so any unbecoming conduct by familiars will reflect badly on their masters." Ms. Longueville was not stupid nor was she unobservant. She had noticed that her temporary charge wasn't paying attention at all to her words, but that didn't matter to her; she had done her job so no one could complain about that.

Gilgamesh yawned as they walked up the stairs and reached a hallway with dorm rooms lined up on both sides.

"You will be living in the female dorms with Ms. Valliere, but since you're male, sexual misconduct will not be tolerated." Ms. Longueville strained to keep a smile on her face. That yawn seriously pissed her off, but it finally allowed her figured out what aspect about the man was irritating her.

He was an arrogant snob, the type that she usually stole from just to see their humiliation. There were many nobles that she plundered, but none so satisfying as those with this kind of personality. So—in spite of the fact that he was just a mere familiar—she hated him from the moment they met. But even she knew that it was better not to get involved with this mystery man. She wasn't curious enough to stick her hand in a bladed pot.

"This is Ms. Valliere's dorm room. Do you have any questions?" Ms. Longueville stifled the hatred from her eyes as they stopped in front of the dorm's door. She had heard all about what happened in the cafeteria and the wound he received, but the familiar was walking around as if he wasn't hurt at all. Not even one movement had been made by the familiar to avoid applying pressure to his abdomen during the entire walk.

"None that I would ask a thief," Gilgamesh said nonchalantly.

"Ex-excuse me?"

"Permission granted. You're excused." Gilgamesh opened the door and walked into the dorm.

"Wait!" Her call was unheeded as the door slammed shut, leaving Ms. Longueville in a state of shock and confusion.

Thief? What? How? Part of her wanted to knock on the door right away and demand why he called her that, but that might just portray her guilt. The familiar had only been here for a day and in her presence for only less than fifteen minutes, so it should have been impossible for him to figure her out. Was it just a joke? She brushed a hand through her hair in frustration.

That Valliere girl and the maid were probably there so she couldn't just barge in and use force either, though she was sorely tempted to. She knew that the familiar bested Professor Colbert, but that man was just a teacher, not a fighter. If push came to shove, she believed that she would be able to come out on top as the victor.

Ms. Longueville adjusted her glasses. There was probably no reason to worry. It was unlikely that he had any evidence so she was safe—for now. It was best to keep an eye out and find out more about the familiar. There was a huge payoff, and she wasn't willing to risk it carelessly. In her line of business, it paid to be extra cautious.

~o~

Louise stared at her reflection in the mirror. She looked normal with her face washed and her hair combed through. What worried her were her eyes since they were bloodshot from the crying, but since it was late at night, she could just use the excuse that it was just eye strain from staying awake too long.

All of the evidence of the vomit in the sink had been washed away, and she gargled enough water to get rid of the smell from her mouth. She just hoped that the maid wasn't observant enough to notice anything off.

That stupid familiar. This was all his fault.

If he had been cooperative from the beginning, all of this wouldn't have happened.

Well, there was a good side to everything. Gilgamesh finally accepted her as his master, and now, everyone knew that he was powerful. So much more powerful than the dumb-looking salamander that Kirche had. She couldn't wait to throw that in her face.

Oh wait.

The reflection that stared back at her was now much somber. How could she had forgotten?

Louise sighed. As much as she hated to admit it, she owed that Zerbst. A lot. She heard earlier from Professor Colbert how the Germanian went and told him what was happening in the cafeteria. If it wasn't for her, Louise wouldn't be alive right now. Even she couldn't be so ungrateful to someone who saved her life.

Her honor as a Valliere demanded that she not only thank the girl but also repay the debt to her. Kirche was probably going to lord this over her, and there was nothing she could do about it. Her big sister, Eleonore, would probably lock her up in the Valliere tower if she found out about this—and she didn't even want to think what would happen if her mother found out. She shivered at the thought.

"Snap out of it, Louise." She slapped her hands onto her cheeks. "You're a Valliere. Act like one."

Louise breathed in deeply. It was now or never. Doing one last breath check by cupping her hands in front of her mouth and blowing into it so she could smell it, she nodded in satisfaction. Good, the smell was mostly gone. She unlocked and opened the door. Walking out into the main room, her face nearly fell at the sight before her. Or rather, the person in front of her.

"Y-y-y-y-y-you." Louise held back her dismay and steeled her resolve. "H-how long have you been here?"

"Hmm? A few minutes," Gilgamesh said with a smirk. He stood in front of the Louise and the restroom door with his arms crossed while Siesta stood a small distance away, looking nervously between the two. He sniffed the air, his face wrinkling up at a slight putrid smell. "Take a shower."

"I already took one earlier," Louise said indignantly as she had taken one after the cafeteria incident, but inwardly, she was glad that her familiar wasn't here earlier. She didn't want to risk Gilgamesh finding out that she was crying. Still, did he smell the vomit on her? She'd thought she gotten rid of most of that.

"Take another one." Seeing that Louise was going to protest, Gilgamesh said, "This isn't a choice; this is the decision of the king. I will not be forced to slumber through even a waft of this putrid odor."

Louise glared at him, but instead of arguing, she stomped past him and pulled out a set of sleeping clothes and a towel. She was too tired to argue, and she didn't trust herself to not blow up her room in the process. She would just have to deal with him in the morning. Gilgamesh had accepted being her familiar, so she just needed to make sure he understood his position, right?

"Maid," Louise said to call over Siesta, but the servant girl was already by her side. Siesta took the clothing and towel into her arms. "Do I smell?"

Siesta blinked, but leaned forward and sniffed the air.

"No, Miss." There was nothing, though she wouldn't have said anything even if there was a smell. As a commoner, even under the employ of the school, she wouldn't be able to get off easily if she angered a noble.

Louise didn't say anything else and simply walked out of the dorm room with the maid in tow.

Gilgamesh watched them until the door closed, leaving him completely alone. Only then did he walk over to the queen-sized bed and fell back on it. The bed was not as soft or comfortable as the beds that he was used to, but at the moment, he didn't care.

He clutched at his wound, allowing a low moan to escape him. It was only now when no eyes were upon him that he could show his pain. It was the pride and curse of the king to always be forced to show only his regal form. Only in rare circumstances would he allow such debasement be seen.

He was no stranger to bloodshed and massacre, to depravity and atrocities. Courage wouldn't have been enough to stay his hand. However, she had impressed upon him a majesty only seen in heroes in that fleeting moment. A boon for such an accomplishment was only natural.

Heroes were to be respected in their own right. One did not need to be a king or nobility to be a hero; had not Enkidu, his only friend, impressed upon this notion? If heroic qualities came simply from birthright, then Enkidu—who was born from mere dirt as a homunculus—would have been lower than even the most common dregs of humanity. Yet, he was the only one who he would call a true equal, barring Saber. Enkidu had taught him much.

And perhaps, that was what saved him.

Gilgamesh was no fool. Had he continued the fight, there was a chance that he would have died. Not from his injury; that stomach wound, while dangerous, wasn't an immediate issue. What would have been the death of him would be his prana supply.

Magic worked by using two sources, internal and external. The activation of a spell would first require energy from a magus's own body, but afterwards, the spell would rely on the external energies from the environment around them to pay the upkeep cost and maintain the spell's existence. The Gates of Babylon was no mere caster's spell, but it relied on the same concept.

He only needed to open the Gates before he could use his entire collection at his leisure—an efficiency of the highest degree. However, instead of taking from the environment, the Gates of Babylon had continued to drain prana from his personal reserves. That was unacceptable. Not only did it limit the length of time that he would be able to use his treasury, but it posed a deadly weakness to his otherwise impregnable superiority.

Did energy not exist in the environment? Or perhaps…

…this world was rejecting him?

He supposed that was possible. His origin was entirely foreign to this planet, and if it was anything like Gaia—his home world—he would expect those troublesome Counter Guardians to be making their presence known to him soon. That made this prana problem even more imperative.

Until he finds out what exactly were the problem and the solution, he would not be able to fight a prolonged battle. He had never considered such a thing to be possible so he had never attempted to find out how long his prana supply would last under these conditions. It could be as long as a full day or even as short as a few hours.

Pain struck at his abdomen again. It seemed he couldn't simply ignore the pesky wound.

In his hand, he summoned forth a glass potion container—shaped similarly to a test tube—with red liquid inside with cork plugged into the opening. He eyed the liquid with distaste, swirling it as he brought it up to eye level. He'd mostly kept this potion and its ilk for mostly his collection, but the situation necessitated its use. The potion had potent regenerative properties that would heal his wound at a much faster rate. Unfortunately, it would erase the scar left by Saber as well. That was something that he had wanted to avoid, but his recent wound irritated him far too much now for him to simply wait for it to naturally heal.

Popping off the cork, he downed the concoction, grimacing at the taste. He careless tossed the empty bottle to the side, letting it shatter on the floor besides the bed. It was gruesome to his refined palates, but hopefully, it wasn't expired. He had no clue if the components inside the potion could degrade with time, but he supposed that he would find soon enough anyways.

Ugh. He had forgotten how horrid the taste was. Right now, beneath the bandages, he could feel new flesh forming, and a most annoying itchiness that felt like hundreds of insects crawling over his abdomen.

Gritting back the urge to scratch, he summoned a golden, jewel-encrusted goblet and a particularly tasteful wine bottle. He poured some into the goblet and drunk it down with one gulp to rid himself of the taste of the red potion. It was a potent enough wine that it started to create a small haze in his mind.

This was good; it would allow him to sleep on this subpar bed and through the itchiness easier. He would deal with the issues tomorrow. Right now, all he wanted was some sleep. His clothes vanished back into the vault, leaving him completely nude. He scooted under the blanket and made himself comfortable, but there was something missing.

"Oh, that's right."

From his vault appeared one of the few treasures of modern society that he had acquired into his collection during the downtime between the Holy Grail Wars. It was a cylindrical-shaped pillow that was as tall as he was with a picture of Saber along its length. It was called a dakimakura by the Japanese in Fuyuki, but he preferred to call it by what it was: a hug pillow.

It had taken him a lot of time to find an artist that could draw a satisfactory portrait of Saber from his description alone, but plenty had came forward to try to claim the large reward. His younger age at the time had made the purchase an impulse buy, but the pillow had grown on him. Indeed, it was a masterpiece. There were even modest bumps on the large pillow where the breasts were to make it feel even more real.

Hugging the pillow, Gilgamesh squeezed the picture onto his body. He wanted to be as close to his Saber as possible. Within moments, he was asleep.

~o~

Louise relaxed in the steaming, perfumed water. She leaned back against the wall of the bathtub, letting the tension and stress flow out of her body. It was a Roman-style bathhouse with marble tiles and a large bath in the middle, fed a continuing stream of water originating from the mouth of a dragon statue. The sheer size alone could let a couple of classes full of female students to bathe at the same time, but as it was this late at night, there was only just her.

Oh, and the maid.

Siesta stood some distance behind the noble on the slippery tiles, still wearing her full maid uniform while holding a towel on one arm. Sweat dripped copiously down her hairline as she endured the heat. It was like a sauna. Her throat was dry, it was hard to breathe, and she was practically on the verge of tears, but it should be over soon—or at least, that's what she kept telling herself.

How many minutes had they been in here? Ten? Twenty? Thirty? It certainly felt like thirty minutes.

"Miss, are you done yet?" Siesta asked, trying to keep the whining out of her voice. "Your skin will become wrinkly if you soak in the water too long."

No reply came.

"Miss?" Siesta slowly walked towards where Louise was bathing. As the smaller girl's back was to her, she couldn't see if Louise heard her. She tapped the strawberry blonde haired girl on the shoulder.

Louise's head sank below the water.

"Miss!"

~o~

Gilgamesh groggily opened his eyes. Something was prickling his right hand. He slowly raised his hand and stared at the glowing seal.

_Go help your master. Unconscious._

Immediately categorizing the matter as insignificant, he rewrapped his hand around the Saber pillow and promptly fell asleep again.

The runes glowed even brighter, but the only response from the king was light snoring.

~o~

"Uuuu." Siesta moaned as she slowly marched through the hallway of the girl dormitory, carrying the sleeping Louise on her back. The noble was now dressed in her underwear and a translucent pink chemise, a set of clothing that would be embarrassing if there were anybody awake. She needed to get a pay raise for this. Not only did she save the girl from drowning, she even dried her off and dressed her—and that wasn't even mentioning the fact that she was now carrying her to her dorm. Siesta was tired; she had been awake far longer than she was used to, and she wasn't made for physical work like this. She never thought she would see the day when she would miss her regular, boring duties.

Trudging up to the door, she tested the door knob. Good, it was unlocked. Pushing it open, she blinked in surprise. There was a lit lamp that illuminated the room, but Gilgamesh was sound asleep in the bed. She thought Gilgamesh was supposed to be a mage so why didn't he turn off the lights?

Wait, wait, wait. If Gilgamesh was in the bed, where was she supposed to put Louise? She turned her head to look at the sleeping girl, the shorter girl's head perch on her shoulder.

Well, they're master and familiar, right? It should be fine.

Siesta moved over to the bed and deposited her charge on it to the blond man's left. She tugged the blanket a little to free it up a bit, eliciting an incomprehensible mumble from the sleeping familiar, and held up part of it to wrap it over Louise.

"Eek!" Siesta quickly dropped the blanket over Louise, her face beet red. Gilgamesh was completely naked under there. She had seen a glimpse of the man naked twice in one day. She felt a little faint and fanned her blushing face with her hand.

"I seen men naked before; I shouldn't be this embarrassed." Siesta slapped her palms onto her cheek to calm herself down. She had in fact seen men naked before—even if it was just papa and her brothers.

However, there was something else that bugged her. The blond man was holding onto some kind of large cylinder thing with some kind of picture of it. She didn't really get a chance to have a good look, since her eyes had been occupied by something more…gender specific. Her hand reached forward to check again, but she quickly stopped it with her other hand.

"No, bad Siesta. Bad," she quietly chided. As much as she wanted to reason it as satisfying her curiosity, she knew it was just to see him his smooth, sculpted—

She dropped to her knees and clapped her hands together in a prayer, banishing the thoughts from her mind.

"May the Great Founder Brimir forgive me."

Nodding a little in satisfaction at the small redemption, she rose to her feet and heard a crinkling sound. She raised her foot and saw small, crushed shards of broken glass under her shoe. There was a mess of glass and scatterings of a red liquid that seemed suspiciously like wine.

Siesta sighed. Maybe this was the Founder's punishment. It would take a little to clean, and by the time she would reach the servants' barrack, it would be even later, maybe even morning. Putting aside divine punishment, she wasn't one to leave work undone in any case—especially when it could get her in trouble in the morning.

Siesta blinked the sleep out of her eyes as she rolled up her sleeves. The sooner she was done, the faster she could get to sleep.

~o~

Old Osmond clamped his hands together and rested his elbows on the mahogany desk. In the office that was only illuminated by a single lamp and the twin moons that shone through the window, he sat and contemplated. The problem at hand was troubling to say the least.

He hadn't seen the fight for himself, but the mess that Louise's familiar caused was embedded into the minds of many spectators. There was no limit to the amount of people that could retell the story from their own perspective so it was easy enough to get enough eye-witness accounts, but it gave way to bundles of questions. Even meeting with the blond familiar didn't dispel the mystery that surrounded him.

What facts he did know painted a strange picture. Gilgamesh's strength in shoving over a table that was long enough to hold a hundred students was something that should have been impossible, especially considering how many plates of food were stacked on it; the magic that he displayed when he shot out that weapon didn't conform to any normal human magic; and the durability to withstand a wound that would kill almost anyone made him an enigma.

He sighed. It was at times like these that he distinctly felt his age.

"If you were here, Ms. Longueville, I could just melt my worries away." Osmand's hands groped the air as he fantasized about the soft yet firm bottom of his secretary. It was almost as if she was right in front of him.

"Oh, Ms. Longueville, you shouldn't!"

"Um, Headmaster, is this a bad time?"

Osmond froze mid-grope and slowly raised his head. Standing in the doorway was Professor Colbert.

"Ah, Professor, come in, come in." Osmond lowered his hands and acted as if nothing had happened. "I thought you went to get some rest."

"I couldn't sleep." Colbert entered the room and closed the door behind him. He walked up to Ms. Longueville's desk and pulled the chair behind it, dragging it over to the front of the Headmaster's desk. He sat down and leaned back on it; it was more comfortable than the guest chairs.

"Understandable." Osmond nodded his head. "We have quite the mystery on our hands."

They both knew that was an understatement, but neither of them wanted to voice that fact.

"Well, let's start the first 'What is Gilgamesh' meeting." Osmond clapped his hands together, rubbing them in anticipation. "You said it yourself; he wasn't a normal mage, since he doesn't use a wand."

"Yes." Colbert nodded and tapped his chin. "Maybe he uses ancient magic like the elves. Can you imagine? A human using that ancient magic!"

"No, that's not it. You saw it for yourself." At Colbert's questioning look, Osmond wagged a finger. "In none of the testimonies did Gilgamesh ever chant. Even ancient magic requires spell chanting. Besides, you heard what he said about the subject."

"That's true." Colbert thought back to the incident. Never once did he see or hear the familiar chant a spell before something happened. Still, that didn't preclude ancient magic. "But we can't trust his words. He could have pre-chanted his spells to cast it instantly, but I'm not sure if this works for ancient magic."

"There's not much known about ancient magic, but it is a plausible possibility. There is a chance he has Elven ancestry, even though he doesn't have the deformities of the species such as the pointed ears." Osmond closed his eyes and stroked his white beard. He was an old man and had his fair share of experiences, especially those of war. One of the things that he had joined in on when he was younger was a crusade to reclaim the holy land from the elves. Needless to say, that had been an absolute disaster, and that had been the only time that he had ever seen an elf in action. That experience burned itself into his mind, but even then, he still only knew little about ancient magic.

Seeing that there was not much more that they could gain from this topic, Colbert changed the subject.

"What do you think of his story, Headmaster?"

"Hm?" Osmond popped open one eye.

"The one that he told us about his 'kingship'."

"I'm not an expert on reading people, Professor," Osmond said as he opened his other eye. "From your…experiences, do you think that he was lying?"

Colbert paused. He noticed the slight pause of hesitation just before the word was said, but that wasn't unusual. The Headmaster knew how much his memories of his past weighed on his mind; the actions that he took voluntary so that the kingdom would be safe from all threats—both real and perceived. Even today, the guilt was still ever present and ever haunting.

"I'm not sure," Colbert said, remembering back to the meeting. No matter how much he wanted to forget, he couldn't bury his skills. They were something that were ingrained into him—making them as natural as breathing—so of course, he had instinctively taken notice of Gilgamesh. Yet, he still saw nothing. "I couldn't read him."

Headmaster Osmond pressed his hands together—as if to pray—and touched his lips to his fingertips. His thoughts and expression were unreadable, but his eyes flashed through a series of emotions. Finally, he settled his tired gaze on Colbert.

"Professor, what's your opinion on the matter?"

"He's mentally unstable." The balding teacher sighed and rubbed the bald spot on top of his head. "We might have to take more serious measures before things get out of hand."

"Euthanasia?" Osmond asked. It was rare, but sometimes, animals would be summoned that refuse to form a contract with their summoner. Those animals were usually released, or if they became hostile, they were euthanized. However, he'd never heard of a case where a familiar attacks its master after making a contract; it was something that was deemed impossible. Until now.

"Murder," Colbert corrected.

"Ah, my mistake." Osmond nodded. "Still, that doesn't change matters. He poses a grave danger to Ms. Valliere and the academy students."

There were many children of influential nobles in the academy. If even single of them were seriously injured, it could lead to complications for the academy. In that event, the public outcry from their families might force him to step down as Headmaster. It wasn't something that he wanted to do, but it was his responsibility; the consequences of his decisions shouldn't fall on anyone else's shoulders in any case.

"I'm not sure if it's possible to beat him by ourselves," Colbert said. "Should we inform the palace for help?"

"No." Osmond shook his head. "If the palace finds out, there's no telling what they would do. It's best to leave things alone for now."

"But Headmaster, leaving the situation like this is reckless!"

"So is a hasty decision, Professor Colbert. Let me ask you a question." Osmond turned to stare Colbert in the eyes. "Do you believe in your students?"

"Well…" Colbert looked flustered. "…yes."

"Then believe in Ms. Valliere." Seeing that Colbert was about to protest, Osmond raised his hand to stop him. "I'm well aware of Ms. Valliere's reputation, but remember that you're a teacher. Believe in your student's ability."

Colbert looked conflict.

"Colbert," Osmond softly said. "I believe that Ms. Valliere will find a way to control her familiar. Do you believe in me?"

At that statement, Colbert deflated. It pained him immensely that all he could do for now was simply wait and see. However, he trusted Osmond to make the right judgment so he decided not to argue.

"Headmaster, I'll defer to your wisdom—wait, what're you doing?"

Osmond had placed a crystal ball on the table and chanted a small spell with his wand.

"You'll have to forgive me, Professor, but I'm under too much stress now," Osmond said with a gleeful expression on his face. On the surface of the ball, Ms. Longueville—dressed in a camisole—could be seen sleeping in a compromising position with her blankets splayed out. "This is a quite relaxing."

Colbert seriously doubted that from the Headmaster's heavy breathing, but he wasn't going to refute him. That would just open too many doors that he would prefer stayed shut.

"Isn't this illegal?"

"Oh hush. Let an old man have his fun. Oh, look at that!"

One of the camisole's strap had slipped off Ms. Longueville's shoulder. Blood rushed to Colbert's face. He needed to get out of here.

"I'm feeling sleepy, Headmaster. I think I'm going to head back to my room now."

~o~

A/N: During the interview with Gilgamesh, at the point that he says, "I suppose I can enlighten you plebeians," insert this fic below for lulz.

http : / / nrvnqsr . us . to / showthread . php / 586-Like-a-King-oneshot

(This link is written by ItsaRandomUsername, not me!) (Take out the spaces in the link)

Sorry for taking so long, but I'm now done with reading all available ZnT novels.


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